Does Medicare Allow For Agility and Innovation?

The call came around 10 pm on Saturday night. Helen was concerned by her mother’s cough and lethargy. I checked my schedule, and we agreed to meet at the house first thing in the morning. 

I awoke before the sun rose. My car rustled through the half-melted snow as I sped down the freeway. Thirty minutes later, I pulled up to the small bungalow at the end of the street. Helen and her husband greeted me at the door. The look of concern was apparent on both their faces.

We chatted for a few minutes before I went to the bedroom to do my exam. Helen felt her mother was generally doing well at home by herself, but the last few days had been rough. She caught a cough from one of the grandchildren and was slow to recover.  

I knelt at the bedside and examined my patient. She was alert and coherent.  There was a deep rattling sound coming from her left lower lung. Her mucous membranes were moist, but she was weak and resistant to getting out of bed. 

She had pneumonia.

See the rest of my post at The Medical Bag.